Feel Silky Smooth & Beautiful in The Body Shop Beautifying Oils

We love The Body Shop. All of us have our fave prodz from this awesome shop - maybe it's a perfume (White Musk!), one of their luscious Body Butters (Shea Butter!), or perhaps a delicious shower gel (Satsuma!). Or if you are as old as I am, maybe you remember when they had their super cool perfume bar. It was like a little tower in the middle of the shop, full of wonderful perfumed oils that you could wear on their own, layer together, or, add to your fave body product from their unscented line. I mourned the end of those oils, and have even trolled Evil Bay to find some of them- Indian Gardenia, a old fave, is now "vintage" and hard to find for under $60. 

Marual Nut

Marual Nut Oil

So, imagine how happy was I to read about The Body Shop's new Beautifying Oils collection! From their site: "Beautifying Oil is pure beauty in a bottle. Made with a lightweight blend of nut oils including Community Fair Trade marula oil, it gives instant hydration and a shimmering finish". They are gorgeous and luxurious, can be used on hair or skin, and have a lovely scent that does not overwhelm or irritate. And "shimmering" is just the oil effect- there is no glitter or anything like that in the oil. I am huge fan of oils for skin and hair treatment. In the winter, they soothe, nourish and protect the skin, and in the summer, they do the same thing while making your skin glow. No dry ashy legs allowed in shorts/sundress season! That is right up there with the Open Toe Shoe Pledge. Friends don't let friends get flaky. 

Ok- so, my faves? Right now, Strawberry is in my top rotation. Yes! It's The Body Shop Strawberry we loved forevah! Also, Satsuma, which is probably one of the loveliest orange prodz out there, and Shea, which is sweet and comforting. Moringa, sort of a tropical-white floral-tiare scent, is quickly becoming another fave. The scents are very subtle and nowhere near what their small perfume bottles are, but that's ok as the texture and feel of the oil makes you want to slather yourself head to toe.

At under $15 for 100ml, these are easy on the wallet while making your skin glow and smell yummy. Verdict? Love. Obsessively. Go get- now.

Spa Wisdom™ Polynesia Monoi Miracle Oil Smells & Feels Beautiful

I have always loved monoi oil- it makes your skin feel great, look gorgeous and smell delicious. Monoi (pronounded mah-noy) oil is made from a coconut oil that has been infused with Tahitian gardenias (also known as tiare) and has been used in the French Pacific for softening skin and hair forever. There really is something about the coconut-gardenia scent combination is so delicious and beautiful. It really does conjure up images of a tropical sunset with richly scented air that is practically intoxicating. 

Gardenia aka tiare soaking in coconut oil- mmmm

As per my usual preference though, I like a soft monoi. Some are suffocatingly sweet, some are obviously synthetic and plastic smelling, and some (most?) are actually based in mineral oil, not coconut oil. The scent is not the same and I’ve been disappointed in the past. I’m a better label reader now though, and had pretty much given up on finding a soft sweet floral monoi that would sink into my skin locally. I just happened to be in The Body Shop recently however and, always being on the lookout for skin oils, spied their Polynesia Monoi Miracle Oil which is part of their Spa Wisdom collection. A quick scan of the ingredient list confirmed no mineral oil or silicone- yay! And good stuff like coconut, almond and sesame oil and of course, tiare gardenia.

The delicate scent is intoxicating...

The real kicker here is how soft and light the texture of the oil and the scent is. Not a cloying sickly sweet fake flower concoction, but soft and gentle, in an oil mixture than just sinks into the skin. I have used in the my parched hair this summer as well. Highlights combined with driving a convertible have not been kind to my hair. So I rubbed some of the Monoi Miracle Oil on my hands and pulled it through the ends of my hair and let it soak in for a few hours with my hair twisted up. I shampooed & conditioned as usual and the ends of my hair were silky smooth. I add a few drops to towel dried hair for a touch of shine and scent as well. I am a moisturizing scenting fiend, as you know.

And my hair smells like I am here. Perfect.

My favourite way to apply the Monoi Miracle Oil to my skin is to emulsify a few drops in my hands then add a few drops of my body lotion and apply head to toe as usual. My skin drinks it up and it adds a lovely sheen and a dewy appearance. I used it in conjunction with my Body Shop Baby Buriti body lotion for a fantastic combination that smelled so beautiful I wanted to chew my arm off. But it also pairs quite nicely with my unscented go-to Palmers Body Lotion. I will add a little comment about the bottle and the dispenser. It has a tiny hole that nicely dispenses a perfect amount of oil in little droplets so you never end up with a handful of oil making for no waste. Nicely designed.

I got my 150ml bottle at The Body Shop near me for $20. A little goes long way so this will last a long time. I would LOVE a perfume that smelled this good. Gentle soft gardenia with a sweet twist- perfect.

Soft Beautiful Skin with Body Shop Buriti Baby Lotion

I am relentlessly in pursuit of soft moisturized skin. Of course, my crazy climate dictates different needs for different seasons and the summer usually means I can go a bit lighter than the winter with our dry central heating. If you read here regularly you will know that silicones are the bane of my existence. I can tolerate them in tiny amounts but I know that they basically just add the slip of the product, giving it a silky smooth texture. They sit on top of the skin (or hair) and do nothing to improve moisture levels or have any actual dermalogical benefits. I love my Nivea Skin Firming lotion but sometimes in extreme heat the silicone balls up and rolls right off my skin if I rub it.

The Amazonian Tree Of Life aka Buriti Tree

I was in The Body Shop looking for something that didn’t smell like mangos, fruit salad or brown sugar (why Body Shop, why???) when I spied their baby line. It is called the Buriti Baby collection which is based on Buriti Oil. The Amazonian "tree of life", the oil of the Buriti nut contains one of the richest sources of beta-carotene and pro-vitamin A and helps soothe, soften and protect the skin against over-drying. 

Buriti nut

Buriti oil

In the Baby Buriti line there is a body lotion, a body wash, body butter and massage gel. I am not a fan of body butters as I am not keen on sticking my hand into a pot over and over but the lotion with a pump appealed to me. Buriti Baby Body Lotion has a soft sweet scent, kind of nutty but not overwhelming or cloying, and it does not last long on the skin at all. I really like the smell of this lotion though, and found myself wishing I had a little eau de toilette of the scent. It has a light silky texture without that telltale silicone slip. I put the lotion on at bedtime last night and found the scent cuddly and soothing, almost almondy. There is all kind of good for your skin stuff in the lotion, including aloe gel, organic beewax, olive oil, shea butter and sunflower seed oil and not a silicone in sight. It adds a nice glow to the skin and it very soothing after a shower or bath, or a day in the sunshine.

Skin as soft as petals...

I got my 250ml bottle at The Body Shop for $15. They are presently having a super duper BOGO event in Canadian stores so I bought one for my daughter Emilie as well. This is a lovely product and has earned a permanent spot in my lotion coterie. 

Beautiful Tips for Soft, Moisturized Skin

This time of year is brutal for our skin. Dry central heating, with freezing temperatures outside can leave us with rough, dry, itchy skin. Moisturizing has long been an obsession of mine- I’ve been known to hold my daughters down and apply lotion if I thought their skin looked dry.  The knees! The hands! The elbows! Ah those poor girls… I moisturize in the morning, and at night, and pretty much  at any time I can. Like the main rule of real estate is Location, Location, Location, the rule for great skin is Moisturize, Moisturize, Moisturize.  Inspired by the brilliant Janine Falcon at Beautygeeks I’ve decided to share my favourite products to scrub, polish, and saturate our skin til its plump, dewy and glowy.

First of all, we must exfoliate our skin. Applying moisturizing potions to dry flaky skin is painting over chipped peeling paint without scraping and sanding first.  It’s a waste of product and the skin that needs the nourishment won’t get it. There are two ways to exfoliate, manually, with a granular or “scrub” cosmetic product or brush/loofah/mitt product. This is best done is the shower unless you want to vacuum or sweep up the by products of this process…which is dead skin. Ew.

My favourite exfoliants are the scrubs. These usually contain rough granules that help smooth the skin. I like high and low versions of these products, as long as they get the job done.  For low, I’ve used the basic  St Ives Apricot Scrub. I use the original formula is intended for the face but the granules are nice and fine and work miracles when used head to toe in the shower. I also enjoy the scrubs that heat up. St Ives Fresh Skin Warming Scrub is a facial version that I have used head to toe & find it quite cozy and comforting after a day in the cold. The St Ives Mineral Therapy Body Polish is also quite good but I’ve been equally happy with all of these. Extra attention given to knees and feet and especially any area that gets, ahem, sat on all day. Another exfoliating option is via a vitamin A or alpha hydroxy or chemical exfoliant. I have recently been using Derma E Vitamin A Retinyl Palmitate Wrinkle Treatment Gel. It is for the face, but I didn't know that! It comes in a large bottle for under $15 and I have been using it all over my body at bedtime. It is barely scented with a mild cucumber scent and I love its smoothing effect.

My higher end faves include my latest love, Caudalie Merlot Friction Scrub. It comes in a lovely pot, smells divine and makes my skin smooth as silk. I adore the Caudalie line and their Beauty Elixir is an HG product I adore. The Nuxe Tonific Exfoliation is a kinder, gentler scrub that also smells and feels luxurious but is perfect for a more sensitive skin. The Clinique Sparkle Skin Exfoliator is another one I love. Well, except for the name. Are you naming your products for 6 year old girls Clinique? Anyways, I have been known to use the Clinique 7 Day Scrub on my body as well- it smells amazing and sometimes I prefer the smaller size “scrubbers” that come in the facial formulas.

I have never been a big fan of the cloths or brushes that exfoliate as I tend to like products- the scent, the luxurious feel of a body product just appeals to me more. However after reading Beautygeeks raves for the Dermalogica Buffing Cloth I think I might have to get one. I adore Dermalogica and find their products have integrity and purpose so this cloth sounds perfect!

Kiehls makes an oil wash as part of their Argan line- Superbly Restorative Argan Body Cleansing Oil. This stuff is genius and somehow manages to cleanse and lightly resurface at the same time. Again, I have only tried samples of this but plan to get my hot little hands on a bottle. Soon.

Ok. So now that we have scrubbed, buffed and polished ourselves to a shine, its time to moisturize! I am a big fan of body oils, and I especially love to combine them with lotions and creams for extra oomph. I am almost through a bottle of Weleda Wild Rose Body Oil and while I quite liked it, I am keen to try some others before buying another bottle. The Wild Buckthorn Oil Janine mentioned sounds wonderful, as does the latest Weleda Oil, Pomegranate.  The Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse has been a long time favourite of mine- it smells like soft sweet honey and just soaks into the skin. Neutrogena Sesame Body Oil is a classic as well. This is perfect for right after the shower and the scent is soft and lovely, as well as nostalgic as I recall using this as a teenager. Has anyone tried the Kiehls Argan Dry Oil? This stuff is magic and while I have only used samples, a bottle of this stuff is on my hit list.

I also adore Monoi Oil- it smells like gardenias and sunshine. I use the Yves Rocher Monoi Oil but have heard it has mineral oil…I have also used and loved The Body Shop Spa Wisdom Monoi Oil which does not list mineral oil anywhere but The Interwebs is crawling with Accusers saying it has mineral oil as well so if anyone knows of a readily available Monoi that is free of mineral oil let me know!

Lotions and creams are a must have in the fight to stay soft and moisturized. My ultimate high end product is Kiehls Crème de Corps- nothing soaks in like this product and when used regularly it does improve the texture of your skin. It has almost no scent which is great for use in the morning as it won’t interfere with my perfume.  My go-to daily moisturizer is Nivea Q10 which I’ve reviewed here. I used Palmers Cocoa Butter lotion forever but stopped recently as the scent became too overpowering for me. I have seen an unscented version on the web but have yet to stumble upon it in real life. If I do, I will buy a case as this is truly the BEST lotion I have ever used, and at $8 a bottle the value is unprecedented.

What are your faves? How do you stay soft, silky and glowy? Share!